Mom Gets to Hear the Voice of Son Who Committed Suicide Through Kindness of Strangers

Mom Angela McElhiney cherishes the video of her son Nathan singing "Wayfaring Stranger" from a school performance. Tragically, Nathan committed suicide this past fall at age 15, so you can imagine how special it is for his mom to hear his voice on the recording. Consider too that, according to CNN, McElhiney said the song is "about someone going, basically, to heaven."

Still, Nathan's truly beautiful singing was difficult to hear over distracting background noises like coughing and movement from inside the gym where the performance took place.

McElhiney posted the YouTube clip on Reddit and asked for tips on how to improve the quality of her beloved video or a referral to a service that could do it for her.

Instead, Reddit users immediately took on the task of restoring the video themselves. Some were audio engineers, professional musicians, and even movie sound editors, from all over the world. CNN reports one stranger stayed up almost all night editing the clip.

McElhiney also said, "There were a lot of people who said 'I don't really know what I'm doing, but here's my best shot at it."

Although the holidays without Nathan are a struggle, the acts of generosity Reddit users showed her are definitely a comfort. McElhiney told CNN, "I never expected so much kindness and so many people taking time out of their day."

Melissa Willets is a writer/blogger and a mom. Find her onFacebookwhere she chronicles her life momming under the influence. Of coffee.